The Logical Blog by IconLogic

TechSmith Camtasia: Proxy Media

Proxy media has been available in Camtasia for a few years. However, with a recent update to Camtasia 2023, recordings created by the Camtasia recorder are added to the media bin and the timeline as proxies by default.

Using proxy media speeds up production by lowering your computer's processing requirements while editing within Camtasia. However, using the proxy feature results in a blurry video on the canvas. Learn to disable the proxy feature on demand.

After recording my screen in the recorder and clicking the stop recording button, the recording is automatically taken into Camtasia as expected. There is one notable change: I am now alerted that the media is being added as a proxy.

The proxy media on the media bin includes a yellow circle, which can also be seen on the timeline. Also, the proxy media is blurry on the canvas.

While proxy media reduces your computer's resource load, you may not like blurry media on the canvas. You can remove the proxy by right-clicking the media bin asset and choosing Proxy video > Delete Proxy Video. Deleting the proxy video does not delete the video from your project. Also, while the proxy video is blurry on the canvas, the video is not blurry in the exported project.

Here's a video showing the proxy feature in action: https://youtu.be/qIytcfJoiXY.

For Camtasia mentoring or training, please email me or visit https://www.iconlogic.com/instructor-led-training/software-title/camtasia.html

TechSmith Camtasia 2023: New Integrated Assets

TechSmith has integrated some fantastic assets with Camtasia update 23.3.2.

You will need to ensure that you are running the latest Camtasia update. To find that update, choose Help > Check for Updates. To check your version, choose Help > About Camtasia. (If you’re on a Mac, choose Camtasia 2023 > About Camtasia.)

Using the assets is simple. Visit the Media tool at the left and click the Camtasia Assets icon.

Scroll through the list or, even better, use the Search feature to find what you're looking for. (There are videos, images, and sound assets... millions of them.)

Right-click the asset you'd like and choose Add to Timeline at Playhead.

Alternatively, drag the asset directly onto the Canvas. Either way, the asset will be downloaded from the TechSmith website and added to your project.

Note that if you are using a virtual machine such as Parallels, the download process does not work. Instead, visit the https://library.techsmith.com/en and download the assets manually.

Here's a quick video demonstrating the integrated assets (some are free, and some require a subscription to the assets at https://library.techsmith.com/en).

For Camtasia training, check out our certificate program at https://www.iconlogic.com/techsmith-camtasia-certificate-live-online-course.html. For Camtasia development support, visit https://www.iconlogic.com/basic-development-services.html.

TechSmith Camtasia: Reducing the Size of Video Output

I received an email from someone who recently attended my TechSmith Camtasia virtual classes. She wanted to know some best practices for reducing the size of exported Camtasia projects. That is an excellent question!

To begin, TechSmith says that "larger videos (in resolution) will dramatically increase file size. Limit your video size to no larger than 1280 pixels (width) by 720 (height)."

I completely agree with what TechSmith is saying. In fact, project (canvas) size and recording area size are two concepts that I cover early in my beginner Camtasia vILT class.

You can control the size of your Camtasia project by choosing Edit > Preferences > Project.

Set your project size right away. While it's easy to change the size of your project at any time, once you have added media to the project the new size will likely have a negative impact on media objects already added to the timeline/canvas.

TechSmith also suggests not recording the entire screen unless it's necessary, or consider adding zoom and pan actions in Camtasia. This way, you can still scale down the video but still focus the viewer's attention on a specific portion of the screen.

Here are some other great suggestions direct from TechSmith for lowering the size of the exported video:

Amount of Movement in the Video

The more movement in the video, the larger the file size. Importing PowerPoint slides as images will result in a smaller file size than recording an on-screen video of the PowerPoint presentation. If possible, try not to drag windows around and limit some of the animations in PowerPoint.

Audio Type

It is rare that uncompressed audio is going to make an audible difference to your learners. You can reduce the file size by compressing the audio upon production. The default MP4 format uses AAC audio compression, which has a good combination of sound quality and file size.

Frame Rate and Encoding Mode

The frame rate indicates how many frames per second are shown to the viewer. The custom production settings allow between 1 and 60 frames per second (FPS). The default is Automatic FPS, which is good for most videos. However, for many screen recordings, 15 fps is fine. If you're recording something static, like a PowerPoint presentation, you can drop the FPS down, which will save file size. You can also adjust the Encoding mode to increase or decrease the video quality. The higher the quality, the larger the file size.

The frame rate and Encoding mode options can be changed by choosing Export > Local Legacy Files > Video Settings.

TechSmith Camtasia: Timeline Zooming and Disabling Snapping

When I teach my TechSmith Camtasia vILT classes, we spend a lot of time working on the the Timeline. If you need to select a small amount of time between two media objects or position the playhead in a very specific area, things can get tedious because of Camtasia's snapping feature.

Here are two quick tips that will help with selecting tiny areas of the Timeline:

1. Zoom in.
   
   The closer you zoom in on the Timeline, the easier it will be to select tiny areas of video media.
   
   
   
   
2. Temporarily disable Timeline snapping.
   
   When trying to position the playhead, you'll notice that it snaps to areas along the Timeline. This snap behavior is great until it isn't. You can temporarily disable the snap feature by pressing [ctrl] on your keyboard as you drag the mouse. By disabling the snap feature, you will easily be able to position the playhead in a specific location along the Timeline.

Pressing the [ctrl] key to temporarily disable Timeline snapping works on the Canvas as well. If you resize a Canvas object, the resizing process snaps to a canvas grid. Press [ctrl] on your keyboard while resizing an object on the Canvas, and you'll bypass the canvas grid snapping.

I've created a quick demonstration of both zooming the Timeline and disabling the snap feature. Check out the video here.

TechSmith Camtasia 2022: The Freeze Region Effect

During a recent TechSmith Camtasia vILT class, a student asked if it was possible to remove alert messages that always seemed to appear when she was recording her screen. She felt that the pop-ups were, at best, distracting for her learners or, worse, ruined her screen recordings.

I've found the Freeze Region Effect in Camtasia 2022 to be one of the best Camtasia features... ever... period!

1. On the Timeline, position the playhead just before the distraction you'd like to cover.
2. Select the media.
3. From the Visual Effects area, right-click the Freeze Region Effect and choose Add to selected media.
   
   
   
   
4. On the Canvas, resize and reposition the Freeze Region so that it covers the distraction.
5. On the Timeline, change the starting and ending point of the Freeze Region.
   
   

You're done! Sounds too simple, right? Check out this video and see for yourself how easy to use the Freeze Region effect!

TechSmith Camtasia: A favorite new feature

While there's plenty to love about Camtasia 2020, the feature I'm highlighting this time is Favorites.   Camtasia is loaded with tools. If you think I'm exaggerating, here's a list of the tools available in Camtasia 2020, Mac:

There are so many tools, you might need to click "More" to see all of them (the "More" option automatically appears if your window size is too small to display all of the tools or your screen resolution is low).   And clicking a tool, such as Annotations, often leads to multiple categories leading to even more tools. In the image below you can see what I'm talking about when it comes to the Annotations tool. There are 6 related tools (Callouts) grouped with the main Annotations tool.

I am not suggesting that TechSmith should remove tools from Camtasia. I say bring on more tools, TechSmith (I look forward to seeing a dozen more tools in Camtasia 2021). However, if you're like me and you use several eLearning development tools, remembering where your "go-to" Camtasia tools are located can be a challenge.   Which brings me to Favorites.   Find a tool you use frequently (any tool). Right-click the tool and choose Add to Favorites.

Once a tool has been added as a Favorite, the tool gets a gold star. And from now on, the tool will be shown in the Favorites area of the toolbar.

Right-clicking a Favorite is going to be the easiest and fastest way to work with the tool. And should you no longer want a tool as a Favorite, a quick right-click allows you to delete the tool as a Favorite (but does not remove the tool from Camtasia).

Looking for Camtasia training? Check out these live, online, instructor-led training classes (all Guaranteed to Run).

TECHSMITH CAMTASIA: These 2020 Features are Magnetic!

TechSmith recently announced an update for Camtasia from version 2019 to version 2020. Some of the top enhancements you'll find in the Camtasia 2020 update include templates, placeholders, replaceable media, reversible transitions, a detachable Timeline, the ability to control callout text resizing (the feature can be toggled on or off), and magnetic tracks.   In the next few newsletters, I'll delve into some of the new Camtasia 2020 features. To begin, let's focus on the detachable Timeline, magnetic Timeline tracks, and reversible Transitions.   In the image below notice that I've added some media to the Camtasia Timeline. Gaps between Timeline objects aren't ideal, and I have two gaps as indicated by the orange annotations in the image.

One awesome new feature in Camtasia 2020 is the ability to instantly remove Timeline gaps via magnetic tracks. To enable this feature, click the magnet icon to the left of the track as shown in the image below.

The gaps between Timeline objects are instantly removed. And now that the track is magnetic, there won't be any gaps in the track moving forward.

Speaking of enhancements, do you notice anything strange in the image of the Camtasia 2020 interface below?

By default, the Timeline is anchored to the bottom of the Camtasia interface. In the image above, the Timeline is detached. Detaching the Timeline is helpful if you want to position it someplace specific on your display or on a second monitor. To enable the feature, choose View > Timeline > Detach Timeline.   Should you lose track of the Timeline (it can easily go behind the Camtasia main window), choose View > Timeline > Attach Timeline.

Last, but not least, you can now reverse Transition effects. In the animated image below, I've added the Cube Rotate transition to some media on the Timeline. Check out how I can make the cube rotate the opposite direction simply by clicking Reverse on the Properties panel.

***   Looking for Camtasia training? Check out these live, online, instructor-led training classes (all Guaranteed to Run).

***

Kevin Siegel is the founder and president of IconLogic, Inc. He has written hundreds of step-by-step computer training books on applications such as Adobe Captivate, Articulate Storyline, Adobe RoboHelp, Adobe Presenter, and TechSmith Camtasia. Kevin spent five years in the U.S. Coast Guard as an award-winning photojournalist and has three decades’ experience as a trainer, publisher, technical writer, and eLearning developer. Kevin is a Certified Master Trainer (CMT), Certified Technical Trainer (CTT+), Certified Online Professional Trainer (COTP), and a frequent speaker at trade shows and conventions.

eLEARNING DEVELOPMENT: Dude, Watch Your Aspect... Ratio!

When creating eLearning in TechSmith Camtasia, Adobe Captivate, or Articulate Storyline, one critical consideration is the physical width and height of your project (also known as the canvas size).   The size of the project is measured in pixels and if you don't get this right from the start, changing your mind later could lead to some unintended consequences. (Objects being resized out of proportion is one of the biggest concerns.)   When I teach any of my eLearning courses, I encourage learners to consider their end-users when determining the size of the canvas. These days, most users access eLearning content on anything from a desktop computer to laptops to mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones.   In my experience, most devices used to view eLearning are shaped more like rectangles than squares. For that reason, I think the eLearning canvas should be set up to use a 16:9 aspect ratio as opposed to 4:3.   The aspect ratio of an eLearning canvas designed to be viewed on its side, or in landscape mode, is the ratio of its longer side to its shorter side. If you go with a 4:3 aspect ratio (4 pixels across for every 3 pixels in height), you're working with a shape that is tending toward a square. If you go with 16:9 (16 pixels across for every 9 high), the shape is very much a rectangle.   Once you decide on the shape of your canvas (again, 16:9 is a strong rectangle shape), the exact size you use depends on your design and/or the needs of your users. Both 1024x576 and 1280x720 are 16:9 ratios. (Here's a handy list of 16:9 aspect ratios.)   So how do you ensure your aspect ratio is a 16:9 aspect ratio as opposed to 4:3. Read on!   Because eLearning often begins in Microsoft PowerPoint, let's start there. Go to the Design tab on the Ribbon and, from the Customize group, change the Slide Size to Widescreen (16:9).

In TechSmith Camtasia, click the drop-down menu just above the Canvas and choose Project Settings. From the Canvas Dimensions drop-down menu, choose a size from the Widescreen group. All of the sizes in this group are set to an aspect ratio of 16:9.

In Articulate Storyline, the default aspect ratio for new projects is 4:3. Go to the Design tab on the Ribbon and, from the Setup group, click Story Size.   From the Story Size drop-down menu, choose 720:405 (16:9) and then change the Width and Height as needed. Select Lock aspect ratio to ensure you're maintaining a 16:9 aspect ratio as you change the size.

In Adobe Captivate, when creating new projects, select Blank Project and then, from the Canvas drop-down menu, choose an appropriate 16:9 aspect ratio. If you need to change the size of an existing project, choose Modify > Rescale Project and change the Width and Height as appropriate.

***

Looking for training, consulting, mentoring, or development on all things eLearning? We've got you covered. Give us a call at 877.754.2662. You can learn more about our eLearning classes on the IconLogic website.

TECHSMITH CAMTASIA: Out of Sight, Out of Mind

How often have you had multiple objects on the Camtasia canvas and found yourself moving one object out of the way so you could work with another object? If you're like most developers, I'm thinking it's a common occurrence. And while it's not difficult to move an object (just drag and drop), you'll likely have to put the misplaced object back where you found it.   In the image below, I've positioned four objects on the canvas (each of the objects shown below are available for free via Camtasia's Library).

I'd like to change the behavior of the two people on the canvas. However, I consistently found myself selecting the house by mistake and either moving it or accidentally applying behaviors to the wrong object. Also, when previewing the video, I wanted to hide the house and focus instead on the two characters.   Fortunately, the solution to both problems is incredibly simple. On the Timeline, click the Disable Track icon (the eyeball) for the Track containing the item that's in the way.

Not only are the items on the disabled track hidden from view on the Canvas, they won't preview nor will they publish.

If you'd like the hidden objects back, simply Enable the track.

***

Looking to learn how to develop eLearning in Camtasia like a pro? Check out our live, online Camtasia classes and one-on-one mentoring sessions.

ELEARNING AND PRESENTATIONS: In Search Of Free-to-Use Images

by Kevin Siegel, CTT, COTP

When trying to find quality images for use in PowerPoint presentations or eLearning projects created with any development tool such as Articulate Storyline, Adobe Captivate, or TechSmith Camtasia, most people turn to Google. And why not? With a quick search you are sure to find the image you’re looking for.

 

For instance, I recently wanted to find an image of a puppy for use in an eLearning project. (I know, I know, I was enthralled with puppies in my last article... but come on, puppies!)

 

Check out some of the awesome puppy images Google found for me. It's unreal that these images are now mine, all mine!

 

 

As tempting as it might be to use images found via a Google search in your project, I’d caution against it. Most of the images you’ll find on the Internet while using any search engine are protected by copyright law. Using that adorable puppy on your web page, promotional materials, or even your eLearning project without permission from the copyright holder can lead to some hefty fines. In fact, according to Purdue University, “the law provides a range from $200 to $150,000 for each work infringed.”

 

Still wanting to search the web for an image of a puppy to use in a work project? There’s hope. Go to Google's advanced search page. In the all these words area, type puppy.

 

 

Scroll down to the usage rights area and, from the drop-down menu, choose free to use, share or modify, even commercially.

 

 

After clicking the Advanced Search button, plenty of images appear, just like a regular search. However, this time your search results are full of results you can actually use! But, not so fast! Be sure to put in the legwork. Click through to the image you'd like to use and check its usage rights. Some images will be labeled Creative Commons Zero. This means you can truly use, share, or modify the work, even commercially, without crediting the owner. But a lot of these results, while available for you to use, will still have some use restrictions like citing your source. Failure to do so could result in copyright fines.

 

 

But what if you already have an image on your computer or in a PowerPoint presentation or on a Storyline slide (perhaps the image was already being used in your project when you took it over)? How can you ensure that the image wasn’t “borrowed” from a website “accidentally?” For instance, I’d like to use the king-of-all-cuteness image shown below in my project. My friend Biff gave it to me. And nobody knows where he found it. (Biff, for his part, isn't talking.)

 

 

In this scenario, you can perform what is known as a “reverse lookup” that will find similar images and/or websites that are already using the image (a possible indicator that the image is protected by copyright).

 

To begin, go to https://images.google.com and click the search by image icon.

 

 

Click the Upload an image tab and then upload the image from your computer or server. In my example of puppy cuteness, the mighty Google took just seconds to burst my bubble. My puppy image was being used by a site selling images for use on a phone. While the website owning the image might have granted me permission to use their image, it just wasn’t worth the time or effort (so off I went to perform an advanced Google search for free-to-use puppies).

 

 

 

Kevin Siegel, CTT, COTP, is the founder and president of IconLogic. Following a career in Public Affairs with the U.S. Coast Guard and in private industry, Kevin has spent decades as a technical communicator, classroom and online trainer, public speaker, and has written hundreds of computer training books for adult learners. He has been recognized by Adobe as one of the top trainers world-wide.